Main menu

The greatest WordPress.com site in all the land!

364MC: – Research and advice into freelancing – video interviews

As part of my research I thought it was necessary to see what people in the freelancing profession of video editing have to say about it and what advice or guidance they can offer to achieve this position. Whilst I have read up on the key skills that are needed for an editor and what the work typically involves, it was important to hear directly from people who managed to make it as freelancers and are making a living from it. The first video I managed to find can be seen below:

The most prominent thing that I have noticed in this video is that breaking into the editing business and especially freelancing is completely different to any other conventional method of getting a job. Whilst a person could potentially just walk into an editing company and throw down a CV and a portfolio and hope to get a job that way, it is much safer and realistic to try to make your own way and create a prominent identity for yourself which is broadcast online as well as through business cards to people. Marvin explains in the above video that following university he continued to film and edit events for clients which eventually led to someone taking his details at a wedding he was filming. This has led to a snowball effect which has launched him into a place at a company where he is now a camera operator as well as an editor. This harkens back to the old saying ‘not what you know, but who you know’. Networking is of paramount importance if anyone is to even hear of you and eventually want to hire you.

This point is also stressed in the video above and expresses the necessity to not just take down contact details of other editors and directors, but anyone that you physically can. The snowball effect is highlighted that through the fact that producers, lighting technicians or literally anyone on set will have their own list of connections which they may put you in contact with in the future if you prove to be a capable and professional worker. This can then obviously jump start a career in many different avenues and a career can be built from there. In this respect, freelancing is usually the natural starting point of any editor and it’s just a matter of working on as many projects as is physically possible until you stumble on that one contact which can launch your future career or put you in contact with the right people. It’s just simply a process of talking to as many people in the industry as possible.

I also researched into the best ways to find work based on the site below:

Once again, personal contacts and networking topped the list, but advertising also caught my attention. Advertising can be done through business cards, a newspaper ad or a personal website. As of right now, the only link to my work I have is my own personal Vimeo page which will not be enough to make me stand out from the crowd. To help my own online identity and to help me grow professionally, I will create my own website which I will continue to use, add to and develop after I have finished university and pursuing my career.